Do you need a hardened data center?

Do you need a hardened data center? If you are trying to protect your data center’s ability to withstand natural or man-made disasters and acts of terrorism, then the answer is yes. The term “hardened data center” described computer room facilities that are designed to withstand tornadoes, earthquakes, and man-made disasters.

Many data center strategies includes using hardened data centers to achieve 99.995% uptime. Hardened data centers, along with redundant data center power and cooling all play a part on maximing reliability and increasing data center uptime.

Not all hardened data centers are alike. Many believe the best type is a reinforced concrete structure.  Reinforced concrete offers the best protection against tornadoes, the most common natural disaster in Midwest data centers and Midwest colocation. F5 tornado resistant data centers help companies protect against wost case.   Reinforced concrete also offers excellent protection from earthquakes.

Some hardened data centers are constructed as a building within a building, based on the thinking that a natural disaster might destroy the outermost building while the inner building protects the data center.  This approach is often used when an existing building is being refit as a data center facility.  The effectiveness of the protection is completely dependent on the type of building and construction.

Hardened data centers can be used as primary (production) data center facilities or as disaster recovery sites.  Many consider a hardened facility more important for the production environment in order to minimize service interruptions.

How important is a hardened data center?  It is critically important if you are trying to avoid downtime and if your area is prone to disaster.

Alex Carroll

Managing Member at Lifeline Data Centers

Alex, co-owner, is responsible for all real estate, construction and mission critical facilities: hardened buildings, power systems, cooling systems, fire suppression, and environmentals. Alex also manages relationships with the telecommunications providers and has an extensive background in IT infrastructure support, database administration and software design and development. Alex architected Lifeline’s proprietary GRCA system and is hands-on every day in the data center.